Isawa Kazue
Kazue Isawa
Year of Birth
1132
25 Years old
Children
Eyes
hazy black
Hair
long, straight, sleek, black
Height
5'6"
Weight
130 lbs
Session 5: 20th and 21st day of Hare
(Note: intended to be a summary; I probably have more details/specifics available for any given event or discussion or description, so please feel free to ask.)
20th day of Hare:
We arrive in Toshi no Naishou in the evening. On the way, we discuss the invitations for the new Governor introductory party. Elements we decide upon for recommendation to Ansho-sama:
* Three main elements to the celebration — a seated dinner party in the Governor’s mansion, a mostly-simultaneous samurai-quarter celebration, and a set of peasant festivals in each of the major settlements (including one in Toshi no Naishou the day after the samurai-quarter celebration), a couple of days after the samurai celebration (supplies for those will be sent with the Imperial Legionnaires).
* There will be a poetry contest, most likely held in front of the Governor’s mansion during the festivities. Three awards, the prize for which will be priority in the selection of housing in Toshi no Naishou, or an alternative boon of similar level. 1: most moving poem/performance, 2: Naishou Province, 3: spiritual.
* Invitations. Each delegation (9 in total) can bring up to 10 individuals of their choosing, with strong implication that the taisas of the clan armies in the Province should be among those. Same for the Imperial Legion, but worded such that the Taisa could attend or designate others instead as she prefers. ~65 local notable samural. the 12 of us in Miya Ansho’s group, and the 8 in the Emerald Magistrate’s party (him, his wife, his 5 yoriki, and one additional spouse brought by a yoriki).
Ansho-sama generally approves.
1st tier of invites (penned by Ansho-sama): 9 clan delegations, 1 Imperial Legion, the Otomo (married) and Miya (widowed, 2 sons) in the Province and their families, the city governor of Koso Mura, the former acting-Governor of Toshi No Naishou, the Jade Magistrate (who is supposedly in the Province, but we haven’t met yet). We will probably have his scribes write the 2nd tier ones.
the large Fortunist Temple in Toshi no Naishou and the Shinsei Temples in Koso Mura will be invited to give an appropriate blessing beforehand.
we consult with Obaasan regarding staffing — she agrees w/ our estimates about the needed additional staffing (servers, grooms, heralds, guides to the palace, sword-polisher assistants and guards for the room, etc) and has a variety of suggestions for how to recruit them for the evening.
21st Day of Hare:
Ansho-sama makes the proclamation about the ball. Also announces that the Lion clan legion is to stay in Sujuu Mura (the town they fortified), the Crane clan legion is to be stationed near Moku Mura, and the Scorpion near Shizu Mura, and that he intends to leave the governor of Koso Mura in place for now.
That morning, we split up and secure ink from Choko, paper from Tarou, and wax from Nanami. For the paper, we get enough of the premium paper for Ansho-sama’s 1st-tier invites, but we will have to go to Koso Mura for the rest. Genjiro also gets recommendations for honey sourcing and honey desserts from Nanami, who started out as a beekeeper and has a monopoly on local waxes. The best waxes in the Province are made in the Nobu Valley, as are the best inks according to Choko, but the best paper comes out of the Kawa Forest and most of it gets sold in Koso Mura.
In the meantime, Sou works on invitations. Main invitation for the delegations and such: springtime and new beginnings theme, with an emphasis on local cultures and foods; he also works in themes of stewardship of the land and responsibility. Carefully words the Imperial Legion invitation to make it clear that the option to come or not is in the Taisa’s hands. makes sure to include praise for dutiful service and to reinforce stewardship in the invites to the city Governor of Koso Mura and the former acting-Governor of the Province. for the notable individuals consciously brings down the level slightly in comparison.
After lunch, Chiyoko, Kazue, Daisuke, and 6 Imperial Legionnaires go to Koso Mura, to arrive around midnight (Taka, Haundo, Akemi, and 2 Imperial Legionnaires will join us the following day).
Planned tasks:
* get paper first thing in the morning and have it sent back to Toshi no Naishou ASAP (with a pair of Legionnaires — no one travels alone!)
* talk to the Shinsei monks about sending someone for the blessing
* order kimonos from Itsuki
* talk to Otou, the chef whose restaurant I ate at with city Governor Shiba Gaijitsu, who seems to be the most famous chef in the Province and is a local — we plan to have him set the menu and also produce part of it while assembling a team for the rest and for the overall service, with an emphasis on regionality and representation; if he has any food procurement notes, we’ll send those back as well, with another pair of Legionnaires.
* evaluate entertainment troupes — jugglers, acrobats, jesters, etc
* attempt to contact the three notable artists of the Province — the Centipede painter I met previously (Moshi Masako, who lives in Moku Mura but also spends time in Koso Mura), a Unicorn sculptor and bonsai artist (Iuchi Lassat, who is based in Koso Mura), and a very skilled painter (Doji Takozawa, samurai manager of a small village that’s off the road between Koso Mura and Toshi no Naishou, so we can stop there on the way back).
Meanwhile, in Toshi no Naishou, in the afternoon kimonos are ordered from Rena, Shou, and Takashi.
Then Genjiro and Junko go talk to the largest merchant in town, Kokoro, about servingware. She doesn’t have ones that match what’s already in the Palace, but provides similarly high-quality sets of other styles to mix in so that we have enough in total: 16 from the Kawa forest, 16 from the Mountains, 16 from Koso Mura.
That evening, Sou and Yukiko go to the Noh theatre, enjoy the skilled and moving performance, and meet the head of the theatre, Kakita Jottei, and his sister, Amihiko. Sou notices the sister’s skill in ikebana, and she agrees to do 8 arrangements for the main court chamber — she grew up in Naishou Province and came back after graduating from the Kakita academy, and seems very confident in her ability to source what she’ll need to make arrangements that express the theme of spring and rebirth, and represent the whole of Naishou Province. Sou also notices that Jottei seems unenthusiastic about the prospect of putting on a Noh performance at the Governor's party and tries to give him various outs, but Jottei seems to see it as his duty now that they have been invited, and so will check with the Crane and expects to receive permission (read: directive) to do it.
Also that evening, Genjiro and Junko visit the Lonely Pearl, widely known to be the best geisha house in the Province. They meet the madame, Kikuko, who comes from Unicorn lands. The house has exactly 7 geisha always, in 7 private rooms, themed with the sun, moon, stairs, and four seasons. Suzuko is the most sought after geisha in the Province, and is booked for the next two weeks. Hichihiko has the best voice of the geisha in her opinion, and is probably the 2nd most sought after; she’s not available that evening, but has a couple of hours open the next night, which Genjiro schedules.
Eventually, Geishia #4 of 7, Hanako, comes out, sings, plays the shamisen (better at playing than singing, but still a fine singer), chats with Genjiro.
Initial Reports to Ansho-sama
For the report to Ansho-sama, I'll note down what general info I have on the state of the governor's palace and the potential quartering options in Toshi no Naishou, as well as an overview of what samurai we've heard of that are in the province as well as what brief descriptions we've gotten of the settlements and other locations in the province (including info about the 3 Tribes, but that section will be mostly just informative of whatever facts I can remember. I will also give a brief report of what Izuna told us about events from her perspective, emphasizing my concern about the missing Phoenix messengers. I don't know that it will be directly stated, but he will probably get the general impression from my report that I feel like the Phoenix were stewarding the Province very well before all of this went down, and that since then, the ones here have been doing the best they can to keep it together for the sake of peace and the welfare of the city and province as a whole, and have been doing a good job under the circumstances. She probably also won't be able to keep some of her growing suspiciousness towards the Crane from showing, though she'll do her best to avoid stating anything outright -- she'll just stick to the facts as given to us by Izuna.
Places I will mention in more detail:
the river and what we learned about the stories related to it and spirits and creatures associated with it
the forest and the rumours we've heard about it (I'll probably mention that I will hope to be able to investigate the ones about portals to other spirit realms myself at some point)
she'll cover what rumors we've heard of the mountains and the swamp as well, though I think we've gotten a bit less detail on those so far. but she'll definitely mention that there are rumors and legends about all 5 of the ancient races here
the various places of worship we've heard about so far -- including the Shinsei temples at Koso Mura, the huge Inari temple, and in particular I'll discuss at length the Temple of Kenro-Ji-Jin i visited in Panchu Mura and the abbott's situation there
which will lead into talk about Panchu Mura. most of her emphasis will probably be on her concern for the peasants who have left, or especially the ones who wish they could leave but don't have the appropriate means or place to go (she'll refer back to the 3 Tribes here). she won't dwell on it, but she will give a brief account of our encounter with the Crane samurai for context, and her disgust at their behaviour probably shows through. but she's more worried about the disruption to the peaceful and wholesomely productive lives of the peasants than her own opinions about the behavior of soldiers. but it's another place where he can probably tell that the Crane's activities in the province are not making a good impression on her.
Again, this probably comes through more indirectly than as something directly stated, but it will probably be fairly clear that these are the things she has found most of value in the province so far: its spiritual traditions, both at the peasant level and at the samurai level (its value as a haven for samurai post-retirement is very real to her its value to scholars as a place for studying those spiritual aspects; and what seems to have been, pre-disruption, the peaceful existence of the people of the province -- Panchu Mura and Toshi no Naishou, at least, seem to have been fairly quiet, well-run, and content, prior to all of this disruption, and that seems to have been broadly true of the province as a whole. The idea of many small, fertile agrarian villages all devoted to the soil god just seems like the way things ought to be in a place like this, to her -- the same with the preserved wildernesses with their local peoples and stories and traditions and ways of life.
At the end, she will probably say something like "these are my thoughts so far, save for anything that seemed better to be discussed in person, of course," and she'll trust those who are giving their reports in person to give the rundown on body we found near the river, and then talk to him about it in person when they meet.
Addendum: trip to Koso Mura points of emphasis:
— orderly and defensible, unique covered marketplace
—Taoist temples — well-cared for, very popular, money clearly invested, on the big side for current use — probably, like the rest of the city — preparing for further development
— three tribes intermingle and intermarry. classes seemed to mix fairly smoothly as well. but still keeping and practicing their various different traditions, shrines, worship, etc.
— close relationships w/ Kawa forest and Taru mountain raw materials providers (closer than the Toshi no Naishou merchants, apparently)
— Koso Mura-Toshi no Naishou rivalry — mostly peasant-based? more than samurai-based anyway. but it does seem to affect the samurai as well — apparently Koso Mura has been having trouble getting goods from outside the province b/c Toshi no Naishou hasn’t been letting things come through (according to Yoshi Masako, a Centipede-clan artist who mostly lives in Moku Mura).
— Shiba Gaijitsu — has been an active governor, working on growing the city in size and importance, there’s been new construction. devoutly Taoist. seems to be attached to the city and its citizens and they seem to feel the same about him.
Sesson 10: 21st of Dragon
21st of Dragon, notes on Communions while investigating in the Eta village:
Commune with Earth:
The earth spirits contacted were not there at the time (most likely they were banished). they came to this location sometime after midnight, but not too long after midnight.
I ask if there’s anything that seems like it would normally be here, but isn’t here right now. They describe Akinari — he is usually here. The washtub is usually full — the weight being less is noticeable to them. (The salt container lived on the table, so hard to know if they’d notice that.)
Commune with Water:
It wasn’t terribly bright out last night — some moon, but moving towards the new moon.
I ask for an image of anything small human sized or above that moved in front of them from around 11 pm to before sunrise (2 raises for clarity).
First — fog. Billowing along the ground, dissipating into a haze maybe 8-10 feet up. Rather than blowing in and staying everywhere, a patch or cloud of fog kind of moves through the area, down the street, from west to east. Sometime after midnight and before 2, a similar-looking fog bank from east to west, moves through, and disappears out of sight to the west. About an hour after that, a pair of peasants walking down the street (west to east), and then another couple right before dawn (east to west).
I can’t think of any spell that does this, precisely. Summon Fog (p170) — Air 3 — but it’s stationary. But it’s the closest thing I can think to it.
We decide to follow the track for now. (This is also when I sent a bird messenger to Isawa Suzuhiho. She replies a few minutes later that she’s on her way, bringing her Legionnaires with her. She’s in the merchant quarter and should reach us in about 30 minutes.)
Commune with the Void:
I ask the Void to reveal whatever it can about the shugenja that banished the kami here. This shugenja is very specifically — and the phrase radiates very strongly — Child of the Tribe of Isawa (Isawa was the leader of a pre-fall of the kami tribe). Images of blood. Prior to the fall of the kami, the Isawa practiced a form of blood magic that did not cause Taint (Taint with blood magic only happened after Fu Leng came after the pit). It was a pure form that they stopped practicing once the Taint was a threat, and once kami-based magic became available, as it was generally more powerful and easier to cast because it didn’t require blood sacrifices. The practice died out around the time Fu Leng launched the first War of Thunder — 1100 years ago. Images of air kami as well. I got the feeling from the first questions that they were alive, a living being, connected to the elements — connected to the Void like all living things, but not like an Ishiken like me.
Next question: what is the connection and nature between the shugenja and the body? Image of a body wrapped in a shroud, burning, seemingly from the inside out. A lot of energetic and excited fire kami. Most likely it’s an offering to the fire kami.
Next question: what is the connection between the shugenja and this village? If there is any connection between them, the Void cannot sense it.
Comments